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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: scale · deal · last · shower · stock · kid · mine · bulb

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. scale — size or range
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. shower — rain
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. last — finally
  9. kid — child
  10. bulb — for light
  11. deal — to handle
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. last — to go on
  15. stock — shares
  16. last — final
  17. kid — to tease
  18. scale — in music
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. stock — goods
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bulb — for light
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. shower — to wash

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com